I watched a Good Eats where Alton Brown. He talked about how the friction from the blades melts the chocolate just right so you don't have to melt and then seed. The steps are in the first part of this recipe. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/rocky-road-bark-recipe/index.html

Wow I should read before I post.

I watched a Good Eats where Alton Brown tempered chocolate using a food processor.

You could use a double boiler for the melting and then spoon over cookies on a rack. Might not be as smooth-looking as dipped, but still tasty.

http://www.theyummylife.com/Slow_Cooker_Melted_Chocolate

InnaC I think this might be what I'm looking for!

You can melt and temper it in the oven, too. This site has some instructions: http://chocolate-affairs.com/tempering_chocolate.shtml

I tried to chop chocolate in my food processor just a few weeks ago, and it was a disaster. The chocolate kept getting trapped on the edges of the blades and worked as a wedge to stop the blades from spinning. Granted, my food processor is several years old and was only a $25 hand-me-down. It was agonizing, though. I don't think my motor will ever recover. I ended up just hand-chopping it.

Microwave it. Do it in short bursts and don't actually complete the melt in the microwave, when it's like 2/3 of the way melted through just take it out and start stirring it like mad, like even after it's melted keep stirring, otherwise you'll get streaks in the chocolate from where the cocoa butter didn't quite mix right after being heated. Even if you get streaks it doesn't hurt anything, just looks a little fun. If you don't break the initial temper you don't have to go through the whole tempering process. Takes like 5 minutes to get 16oz of chocolate going.

I like to do it in a glass bowl, because it holds the warmth fairly well, so residual heat stays in the bowl and helps to melt the glass. I also like to put a heat pad up next to the glass to both keep it warm and to help melt it if there's not quite enough melting going on.

And I have one more way to do it! Also from Alton Brown, you can use a heating pad to never let the chocolate get out of temper in the first place. The key is low heat where you can test the temperature a lot and stir a lot without using water and risk seizing. It's part of his truffle recipe. You could also probably find a video of it; it's in his ganache episode.

I just buy chocolate, and melt it in the microwave. If it was already in temper, and you don't break it, then it stays in temper and there's no worries. To do something similar on the stovetop, you don't fully melt the chocolate - it should just hold its shape, while actually being melted, and you can stir to finish the melting. Alternatively, you can seed the chocolate to get the temper going by reserving a small part and adding that after you take the bulk of melted chocolate off the heat.

A mini crock pot works well to keep it melted for longer durations.

Professionally, chocolatiers have a machine that keeps the chocolate melted in the proper temperature range but there is still a lot of work involved. That's why they're pros. And those machines are $$$$$$$$$$$$$.

Now, I have no idea how not to make a total mess while dipping the chocolates. That part takes forever, and I always end up with chocolate all over my fingers. Meh.

When coating a cake or somesuch that isn't completely covered, put it onto a baking rack, place a sheet pan underneath, and pour the chocolate on (start pouring around the sides, then the center). For smaller items that need to be "dipped", a fork to hold the item and a spoon or ladle to pour the chocolate over the top. If you can, dip the bottom first and let that dry, then do a pour-over.

I've never tried melting it in a microwave...I just think it's too risky because it can literally burn in a second! I'm a fan of doing it on the stovetop in a large that makes it easy to handle!

Check out this website:
http://www.cacao-barry.com/uken/2554
You may need to order the Mycryo, but it's a faster way to temper. You still need a good thermometer and gram scale. Of course it won't be quite the same as couverture chocolate tempered using proper techniques, but it's not bad when you're in a hurry.

I bought a home tempering machine over ten years ago, and never looked back. Best 300 bucks I ever spent.

I melt a little gulf wax into the chocolate as its melting in the double broiler. I use about 1/3 of a small block for a bag of chocolate chips, and i chop the wax finely first. I learned this from my grandmother. It has a similar effect, keeping the chocolate from immediately melting on your finger tips when you eat whatever goodie you've coated in it. Doesn't affect the taste at all! And it's waaaaaay easier, almost impossible to mess up.

I have a neat inexpensive trick for for dipping candy in chocolate.
Take a plastic fork and break off the 2 middle tines. This gives you a tool to set your candy on, dip in chocolate, then remove to parchment paper or a dripping screen to set.

I have also used a darning needle; pushed into the bottom of candy, swirled thru chocolate, then pulled the needle thru a suspended, waxed paper covered, screen, leaving the candy without any marks to set.

I melt 30 pounds of chocolate to dip biscotti every Christmas. Eight years ago I bought a temperer. I used to do it on the stove with a thermometer--too nerve wracking and time consuming. Sometimes you really do need a tool that does only one thing.

I just made homemade turtles for a party and had researched how to properly temper so they would have nice smooth shiny tops. After seeing it in several recommendations for home use, I used a hot water bath (just be careful to not get a single drop of water in the chocolate). I did white and dark, and both just melted slowly with chocolate in a smaller bowl inside a larger bowl with a couple inches of warm/hot water. It took several re-fillings, some stirring, and about 15 minutes but the chocolate worked beautifully and is still shiny and hardended more quickly than it ever had when using the double boiler method. I used a candy thermometer to test and it seemed like it never got above 85-90 degrees. Anyway, just an option, it worked for me. Obviously, for smaller batches but I did 100-150 turtles and it worked well.

I just brought home a Ghirardelli Candymaking and Dipping Bar that I found at Sam's Club. I haven't had a chance to use it yet but the reviews I've read have been good. Tastes better than the usual dipping chocolate and easier than chocolate you have to temper.

http://www.amazon.com/Ghirardelli-Chocolate-Making-Dipping-Double/dp/B001NE44E0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1355661184&sr=8-1&keywords=ghirardelli+candy+making+%26+dipping+bar

I just tempered chocolate for the first time a couple days ago and didn't find it that difficult. I didn't even have a thermometer. Just used a double boiler, stirred until the chocolate was just barely melted, then started adding in the reserve pieces a couple at a time until they wouldn't melt anymore (took the non-melted pieces out). Worked beautifully and wasn't really messy at all. I did have to work quick and the last batch of candy I dipped didn't turn out well because I think the chocolate had cooled too much by then or something -- or maybe seized up. Not sure. But the first couple batches were beautiful.

Several of these comments offer microwaving as a suggestion, but the reader asking the question said she doesn't have a microwave. I typically do stove-top melting as well, but it is indeed so messy. The slow cooker idea sounds fantastic!

I make a firm ganache (vs tempering the chocolate itself) and it works great. 2:1 chocolate to cream.

Try melting in really hot water. Pour water over pieces of chocolate, than leave for a few minutes untill it is very soft (chocolate will not melt into the water), and than just drain the water. I was very suprised when first time this worked, but it is a really quick and easy fix with no cooking.